The University at Albany sophomore guard was a force to be reckoned with from every angle, draining a career-high 30 points as the No. 4 Great Danes cruised to an 86-56 victory over No. 5 University of Maryland Baltimore County in the quarterfinals of the America East Tournament at SEFCU Arena.

Hooley became just the seventh player in UAlbany D1 history to post 30 or more points.

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“It’s a good feeling when the first two go down,” Hooley said. “I just started getting in the groove and my teammates were finding me.”

The Great Danes offense came out fighting, sparked by the dynamic duo of Hooley and junior guard Sam Rowley as the squad looked to take control of the game’s tempo from the get-go.

Just over three minutes into the game, UAlbany seemed to find that control, going on a 12-0 run over the next four minutes, jumping out to a 22-5 lead.

“Our Aussies are good, man,” Danes coach Will Brown said. “They’re really good. I thought we played with great energy.”

For as in control as the UAlbany offense was in those early minutes of the matchup, the Great Danes defense was even better, shutting down UMBC from every angle and dominating the Retrievers on the glass.

By the end of the first half UMBC, which dressed just seven players after earlier team suspensions this week, went just 6-for-29 from the floor and the Great Danes had grabbed a 20-14 rebounding advantage.

“As far as it affecting, the team, of course it affects the team,” UMBC coach Aki Thomas said of the lineup change. “Any time you have players that sit out, there’s going to be change in your approach to the game.”

Even when Hooley, who racked up 10 points in the first 10 minutes, picked up his second foul of the game midway through the half, the Great Danes never sputtered.

Rowley calmly took over control on both sides of the ball, going on his own mini run of eight straight points in the final five minutes to help give UAlbany are more than comfortable 21-point advantage at the break.

“We were firing on all cylinders,” Rowley, who finished with 15 points, said. “Everybody played. So those aspects really brought the team together.”

The Retrievers were able to get some offensive production from freshman standout Rodney Elliott in the second half.

The UMBC guard, who broke the single-season freshman scoring record with 18 total points, cut the Great Danes lead to 19 with just over 16 minutes to play.

“It really doesn’t mean a lot to me,” Elliott said of the accolade. “I’d rather have the win. I mean, I’m happy, I had a great freshman year but I’d rather have an America East title any day.”

But as the Retrievers’ offense desperately looked to find some consistency, the UMBC defense could not find an answer for Hooley.

The Great Danes’ sophomore was a dynamo in the second half, forcing turnovers and sinking coast-to-coast layups.

With 14:43 left to play, Hooley grabbed a putback attempt, sank the shot and drew the foul for the three-point play before John Puk followed up with his own and one to put the Great Danes up by 25, their biggest lead thus far.

UAlbany switched things up after the shots, dropping into a 2-3 zone to slow the tempo of the game and force UMBC’s under-performing offense to shoot its way out of the defense.

But Hooley wasn’t done yet and with 7:47 to play, he drained three straight UAlbany baskets, giving the Great Danes a 33-point lead and the total control the team had been looking for from the opening tip.

“ When you take some open shots, you’re probably expected to make more than you miss,” he siad. I was feeling good.”

By the final whistle UAlbany had shot 56.1% from the floor, going 11-of-20 from outside the arc and limiting the Retrievers to just 37%.

The Great Danes will now square off against top-seeded Vermont tonight with tip scheduled for 5 p.m.

The Catamounts swept UAlbany during the regular season, but after a performance like Saturday’s, the Danes are ready for the challenge.

“Can’t wait, we’d jump on the bus and go to Burlington now if we had to,” Brown said. “Let’s face it, their bus driver and two managers made all-conference. They’re good. But we’re going to fight, scrape and claw. We want this game.”